Demonstrations and car bans
marked the fourth anniversary
of the fall of Baghdad, while a war of words continued
between Turkish officials and Iraqi Kurds. Baghdad and Najaf were under
a 24-hour driving ban. Overall, at least 33 Iraqis were killed or found
dead today and another 61 wounded. Meanwhile, the Department of Defense released
the names of five previously unknown servicemember deaths and a sixth
death was reported elsewhere.

In Najaf, tens of thousands of demonstrators
protested the U.S. occupation
on the fourth anniversary of Baghdad’s fall. They gathered at the request of Shi’ite
militia leader Moqtada al-Sadr. Gunmen attacked a group of Shi’ite protesters
who were traveling to Najaf from Iskandariya; two
were killed and seven injured.

Meanwhile, the Turkish Prime Minister
issued
vague threats at Iraqi Kurds after a Kurdish leader said that any Turkish
interference in Kurdish Iraq would be met with trouble in Kurdish Turkey.